Three Teams Grab an Early Lead: EU CS Week 1 Recap

The European Challenger Series kicked off its first week of play with all six teams in action. Unlike the North American Challenger Series, the EU CS had much more conclusive games and results. Here’s what happened.

(0-0-1) Team Kinguin 0-2 FC Schalke 04 (1-0-0)

The match started in Schalke’s favor and continued in that fashion, as Kinguin did not look like they were playing as a team. The players on Kinguin played like individuals and did not seem to be on the same page for most of the game. The two teams were playing on completely different levels and Schalke easily took a perfect game one.

Game two was much tougher for Schalke as Wojciech “Tabasko” Kruza made some early plays to help get advantages for his team. Those advantages were quickly erased as Schalke eased into the game and took control over the pace of the match. Schalke took game two and earned the series win.

(0-0-1) Paris Saint-Germain 0-2 Fnatic Academy (1-0-0)

The two teams fought back and forth to take the lead early on in the match. PSG took a small lead, but Fnatic quickly came back to grab the lead over PSG and eventually snowballed their lead into a game win. Fnatic consistently won team fights that gave them plenty of gold to win the game.

The second game started in the same way as the first, with both teams throwing punches and neither gaining a strong advantage. It seemed as if Fnatic was playing to its strengths as a team while PSG was playing to the strengths of its individual players. Going into the mid-game, the teams were still slugging it out with not much separating the two teams. It was a Baron take by Fnatic that eventually separated the two teams in Fnatic’s favor. The second Baron take was the straw that broke PSG’s back and allowed Fnatic to take a series victory.

(1-0-0) Misfits Academy 2-0 Millenium (0-0-1)

Misfits took a narrow gold lead at the start of the first game, and kept the slim lead despite numerous attempts from Millenium to swing it in their favor. A giant team fight barely went in the favor of Millenium, but Misfits held onto their lead. After 50 minutes of play, Misfits won a team fight that led them to the nexus and the game one victory.

The second game began in Misfits’ favor, with the team gaining an early gold lead over Millenium. Misfits steamrolled over Millenium and easily took game two, earning themselves a quick 2-0 sweep for their first series.

What teams looked the most dominant? Who do you think can bounce back? Share your thoughts below or tweet us @GAMURScom.